Tips

Implement three to five ads per ad group. The more ads that are present in an ad group, the more options you’ll have for success in an auction.

Ad variations allow you to easily create and test variations of your ads across multiple campaigns or your entire account. For example, you can test how well your ads perform if you were to change your call to action from "Buy now" to "Buy today". Or you can test changing your headline to "Call Now for a Free Quote" across ads in multiple campaigns. Note that ad variations don’t yet work with responsive search ads.

Learn what works for you, and keep track of the findings. Don’t repeat tests that you completed six months ago. Test with purpose. As they taught you in science at school: establish a hypothesis; prove or disprove that hypothesis; document results; test again.

Focus your testing efforts on high-value campaigns

It’s important to prioritise your testing efforts on the places that matter most. Think about areas of your account that drive a lot of volume or value for you. You can also focus on ad groups that would benefit the most from a new set of ad creative.

Optimise your ad rotation to prefer the best performing ads

While there are use cases for each of the two options, the recommended approach is to optimise. Under this option, ads that are expected to attract more clicks (and conversions if you’re using a Smart Bidding strategy) are delivered more often into the ad auction than other ads in the ad group. Ads optimised to drive clicks can improve both your competitiveness and your bottom line.

Tip

To drive conversions, use the optimise setting in conjunction with a Smart Bidding strategy.

If you choose to rotate indefinitely, it’s important to stay on top of your tests. Every impression that an underperforming ad receives is a missed opportunity, and those opportunities cost you money.

Ultimately, when you’re deciding the outcome of ad tests, you can use a combination of performance stats like CTR and conversion rate along with percentage served. Looking at CTR alone can be misleading. If the system is showing an ad more often than another, it can mean that it’s better at winning impressions in the auction itself, which is often a strong reason to prefer that creative over others.

Conclusion

Your ad text represents your brand to consumers who search on Google.com. It’s important to get the messaging right. Write ads that connect with people as they search.